Helen Leaf

I work with ply-split braiding, creating vessels and sculptural forms that express a sense of wholeness and grace. My materials of choice are woollen yarns, particularly from British sheep breeds, though I also work with paper, cotton and linen.

Ply-split braiding is fairly labour intensive, done with care to achieve a high-quality end result. It sits somewhere between basketry and weaving, interchanging warp and weft to create 2- or 3-dimensional forms. 

In all my work I seek to make things that inspire, that have a timeless quality, and that suggest a sense of elegance and integrity.

I teach workshops and make/supply gripfids and cords for ply-splitting.

I also run the website, https://www.plysplitbraiding.com/ which is a central resource for all things ply-splitting.